“Is this still a buddy movie?” he said, “or is Abe the ex?”White House officials insist it is still the former, pointing out that Mr. Abe is the only leader to be a repeat guest at Mr. Trump’s estate, Mar-a-Lago. Mr. Trump, a senior administration official said, has a lot of respect for Mr. Abe’s views on North Korea. Among the most politically salient issues for Mr. Abe is the status of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea. Still, for Mr. Abe, who has been a stalwart supporter of Mr. Trump’s sanctions against North Korea, the summit meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Kim raises other problems. Mr. Abe, who is trying to weather a political scandal at home, has little room for maneuver with Mr. Trump.

Source: New York Times April 13, 2018 23:37 UTC